MOVING ON, MOVING UP

IT’S GRADUATION TIME AND A GROUP OF APS EDUCATORS REFLECTS ON CHALLENGES AND VICTORIES THIS PAST SCHOOL YEAR

Every spring, graduation time gives parents, teachers, and school administrators a natural opportunity to reflect on how our Albuquerque students fared overall, what programs and strategies worked, and what needs improvement going forward. This year ended on a big note that APS changed its calendar for

■ Highlights included achieving improved literacy scores for grade schoolers; being recognized for strong bilingual and multicultural ed; and helping unhoused students’ families.

■ A big challenge was student attendance, whether truancy or an overall, yearlong dip. One respondent said, “We’re struggling with attendance more than I have ever seen in my career.”

■ There were kudos for creating a closer sense of community between schools and parents/caretakers but also a want to get teachers even more directly engaged with students’ families.

■ The news about APS changing its school year calendar prompted strong, mostly positive reactions. While one answerer flatly stated, “Our students do not enjoy a prolonged day,” most others believe the change will help improve student attendance because of their later start time. Some cited students’ need to get more rest for their growing brains and bodies and one was adamant that this new time change will help offset pandemic learning loss. One respondent seemed to question the question noting, “We need to remember that students are our clients, not adults.”

Differing beliefs are precisely why the UpLift Initiative opens up these dialogues. They help us understand how our students’ families—and their educators—feel about the state of New Mexican education.

Thank you to this article’s contributing academics: Kimberly Finke/ Whittier Elementary School principal, Laura Navarro/Highland High School family community liaison, Ralph Pena/ Emerson Elementary School community school coordinator, Charlton Simmons/ Highland High School community school coordinator, and Katrina Sisneros/Hayes Middle School principal.

2023-2024, so we surveyed a group of teachers and admin about some pros and cons. Here’s what they said.

■ Every educator—teacher or administrator—wanted to broaden the notion of “education.” They highlighted students’ ability at graduation to successfully enter the workforce with both academic and “soft” skills. Soft skills are learned habits like good communication and collaboration aptitude. “Not all students need to be on a college-bound course,” one person noted; “learning trades leading to gainful employment” also makes for a fruitful education. Also, special ed students deserve more prep for post-graduation opportunities.